Disposable bag assembly for vacuum cleaner



March 29, 1966 H. v. KORNSTIEN ETAL 3,242,654

DISPOSABLE BAG ASSEMBLY FOR VACUUM CLEANER Filed March 26, 1963 INVENTORS $449040 .V A op/z svh /v ATTOR EYS United States Patent 3,242,654 DISPOSABLE BAG ASSEMBLY FOR VACUUM CLEANER Harold V. Kornstien, Coldwater, Mich, and Harold A.

Levy, Highland Park, N.J., assignors to Kingston Products Corporation, a corporation of Indiana Filed Mar. 26, 1963, Ser. No. 268,065 Claims. (Cl. 55376) The present invention relates to improvements in porous filter bags of the type employed in certain models of vacuum cleaners to filter dust particles from an air stream while permitting air passage therethrough.

Vacuum cleaners have, in the past, been provided with disposable filter bags composed of paper or the like, but previous bag constructions have frequently been less than completely satisfactory. Some types of bag construction were not dust-tight, particularly around the edge of the bag where it is joined to an end plate which positions the bag over the inlet conduit of the vacuum cleaner. In other cases, the mounting means employed for securing the bag over the inlet conduit did not provide sufficient mechanical stability to the bag structure with the result that it might become completely disengaged from the inlet conduit. In addition to these factors, the bag structures of the past have frequently been characterized by a high cost of manufacture, and an attendant high cost to the consumer because of the various mechanical steps of folding, cutting and securing which had to be performed in the bag assemblies.

With the foregoing in mind, an object of the present invention is to provide a disposable filter bag assembly for vacuum cleaners which is inexpensive and relatively simple to manufacture.

A further object of the invention is to provide an improved filter bag assembly for vacuum cleaners with a mounting means which insures correct alignment of the bag assembly Within the housing of the vacuum cleaner.

A further object of the invention is to provide a three piece vacuum filter bag structure in which the bag itself can be secured to the supporting structure by means of stitching rather than by adhesive as has commonly been the practice heretofore.

A still further object of the invention is to provide an improved disposable bag assembly with spaced locating means, one of which is resilient diaphragm which sealingly engages the inlet conduit of the vacuum cleaner in use.

Other objects and features of the present invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art from the following description of the attached sheet of drawings which illustrate a preferred embodiment of the invention.

In the drawings:

FIGURE 1 is a side elevational view of th improved bag assembly of the present invention in partly collapsed condition;

FIGURE 2 is a front elevational view of the bag assembly shown in FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 3 is a cross-sectional view taken substantially along the line III-III of FIGURE 2; and

FIGURE 4 is a cross-sectional view illustrating the inlet end of a vacuum cleaner and showing the manner in which the improved bag assembly of the present invention is received therein.

As shown in the drawings:

In FIGURE 1, reference numeral indicates generally a disposable bag assembly according to the present invention, the bag assembly consisting of three principal elements, a bag portion 11, a collar 12 at the open mouth of th bag portion 11, and a disc 13 secured to the collar 12. The bag portion 11 has a collapsible median 3,242,654 Patented Mar. 29, 1966 portion generally identified at reference numeral 14 and a closed end 16 formed by folding over and adhesively securing together the panels of the gusseted bag portion. Fold lines 17 running essentially from the open mouth of the bag to the closed end provide for easy collapsing of the bag for purposes of storage and handling.

The bag portion 11 may be composed of any suitable material which is impermeable to the dust in the dust laden air stream sucked through the bag by the action of the fan of the vacuum cleaner but permitting relatively free flow of air through its pores. Suitable paper materials for this use are available on the market.

In expanded form, the bag portion 11 has substantially a rectangular cross-section. In order to provide a closure for the open end of the bag, the material of the bag is gathered and tucked to conform the open mouth of the bag to an annular shoulder 18 of the collar 12 as best illustrated at FIGURE 3 of the drawings. The bag portion 11 is then secured to the annular shoulder 18 by means of a row of stitching 19. The use of the collar 12 as a means for securing the open mouth of the bag portion to the remainder of the assembly has several advantages. The use of a relatively rigid collar, composed of cardboard or the like, makes it a simple matter to secure the two together on automatic stitching machines, and there is no necessity of waiting for an adhesive to dry. In addition, the resulting bag assembly is less likely to evidence leakage in the area of joining the bag to the shoulder.

The collar 12 has a radially inwardly extending flange portion 21 which is provided with a central aperture 22. The collar 12 also has a radially outwardly extending flange portion 23 which, at its outer face, is secured to the inner face of the disc 13 by means of a suitable adhesive. The disc 13 also has a central aperture 24 which is substantially the same diameter as the aperture 22 in the collar 12.

Secured to the front face of the disc 13 is a resilient diaphragm 26 composed of natural or synthetic rubber, or a suitable elastic resinous material. The diaphragm 26 has a centrally located aperture 27 having a diameter somewhat less than the diameter of the central apertures appearing in the disc 13 and the radially inwardly extending fiange portion 21, respectively. The three apertures are, nevertheless, coaxial so that when the bag assembly is placed on the inlet conduit of the vacuum cleaner, the bag portion is held in coaxial alignment with the inlet.

The inlet end assembly of a vacuum cleaner with which the bag of the present invention can be used has been identified at reference numeral 31 in FIGURE 4. It includes a thin shell wall 32 which tapers progressively inwardly towards an end wall 33, the latter having a boss forming a generally cylindrical inlet tube 36 spaced inwardly of the wall 32 and extend-ing axially to provide an outwardly projecting portion 37 and an inwardly pro-i jecting portion 38 extending into the interior of the housmg.

The interior structure of the cleaner is rigidified by the provision of a plurality of circumferentially spaced ribs 39 which extend radially inwardly of the housing. The ribs 39 engagingly support the cylindrical tube 36. Each rib 39 has a radially extending portion 41 spaced axially inwardly of the end 38 of the tube 36. The edges 41 of the ribs 39 are disposed in the same plane to provide a coplanar support means for the bag assembly as will be hereinafter described.

A metal tube 43 is fastened securely in the inlet tube 36 as by means of an adhesive such as an epoxy resin or other suitable fastening means.

At the inner of the inlet tube 36, there is provided a retainer ring 46 to which is secured a rubber flapper valve 47 closing off the inlet. The valve 47 acts as a check valve to prevent dust from being exhausted through the inlet end.

The bag assembly of the present invention is supported within the interior of the vacuum cleaner by the engagement of the flexible diaphragm 26 with the retainer 46 as shown in FIGURE 4. The aperture 27 and the diaphragm 26 is made sufficiently small so that it sealingly engages the inlet tube behind the retainer 46.

It should be noted that the stitching 19 which connects the open mouth of the bag to the annular shoulder 18 is located in a position where it not subject to penetration by dust in the dust laden stream entering the cleaner. The stitching is, therefore, not vulnerable to attrition by air borne dust particles. It should also be noted that the diaphragm 26, the disc 13, and the radially inwardly extending flange 21 on the collar 12 locate the bag unit in proper axial alignment within the interior of the structure thereby reducing the tendency of the bag to be dislodged or disengaged from the inlet tube during use.

It should be evident that various modifications can be made to the described embodiments without departing from the scope of the present invention.

We claim as our invention:

1. A disposable bag assembly for a vacuum cleaner comprising a bag portion composed of a sheet material capable of filtering dust from a dust laden air stream, said bag portion having a closed end, a collapsible median portion, and an open ended mouth portion, a collar received Within the mouth portion of said bag, means securing said mouth portion to said collar, a radially inwardly extending centrally apertured flange portion at one end of said collar, a radially outwardly extending flange portion at the other end of said collar, a centrally apertured disc secured at its inner side to said radially outwardly extending flange portion, and a centrally apertured resilient diaphragm secured to the outer side of said disc, the apertures in said diaphragm, said disc, and said radially inwardly extending flange portion being coaxial, thereby providing a means for mounting said bag assembly on the inlet conduit of a vacuum cleaner.

2. The bag assembly of claim 1 in which the means securing said mouth portion to said collar includes a row of stitching.

3. A disposable bag assembly for a vacum cleaner comprising a bag portion composed of a sheet material capable of filtering dust from a dust laden air stream, said bag portion having a closed end, a collapsible median portion, and an open ended mouth portion, a collar received within the mouth portion of said bag, means securing said mouth portion to said collar, a radially inwardly extending centrally apertured flange portion at one end of said collar, a radially outwardly extending flange portion at the other end of said collar, a centrally apertured disc secured at its inner side of said radially outwardly extending flange portion, the apertures in said disc and said radially inwardly extending flange portion having substantially the same diameter, and a centrally apertured resilient diaphragm secured to the outer side of said disc, the aperture in said diaphragm being coaxial with but of lesser diameter than the diameters of the apertures in said disc and said radially inwardly extending flange portion, thereby providing a resiliently foldable inner lip on said diaphgram for mounting said bag assembly on the inlet conduit of a vacuum cleaner.

4. A disposable bag assembly for a vacuum cleaner comprising a bag portion composed of a sheet material capable of filtering dust from a dust laden air stream, said bag portion having a closed end, a collapsible median portion, and an open ended mouth portion, a collar received Within the mouth portion of said bag, said collar including a radially inwardly extending, centrally apertured flange portion, a radially outwardly extending flange portion, and an annular shoulder portion intermediate said flange portion, the mouth portion of said bag being secured to said annular shoulder by means of stitching, said stitching being disposed forwardly of the plane of said radially inwardly extending flange portion, a centrally apertured disc secured at its inner side to said radially outwardly extending flange portion, and a centrally apertnred resilient diaphragm secured to the outer side of said disc, the apertures in said diaphragm, said disc, and radially inwardly extending flange portion being coaxial.

5. The bag assembly of claim 4 in which the diameter 7 of the aperture in said diaphragm is less than the diameters of the apertures in said disc and said radially inwardly extending flange portion.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,316,674 4/1943 Dow et al -376 2,331,332 10/1943 Latta 55378 2,596,807 5/ 1952 Dippel 55367 FOREIGN PATENTS 1,254,199 1/1961 France.

HARRY B. THORNTON, Primary Examiner. 

1. A DISPOSABLE BAG ASSEMBLY FOR A VACUUM CLEANER COMPRISING A BAG PORTION COMPOSED OF A SHEET MATERIAL CAPABLE OF FILTERING DUST FROM A DUST LADEN AIR STREAM, SAID BAG PORTION HAVING A CLOSED END, A COLLAPSIBLE MEDIAN PORTION, AND AN OPEN ENDED MOUTH PORTION, A COLLAR RECEIVED WITHIN THE MOUTH PORTION OF SAID BAG, MEANS SECURING SAID MOUTH PORTION TO SAID COLLAR, A RADIALLY INWARDLY EXTENDING CENTRALLY APERTURED FLANGE PORTION AT ONE END OF SAID COLLAR, A RADIALLY OUTWARDLY EXTENDING FLANGE PORTION AT THE OTHER END OF SAID COLLAR, A RADIALLY INWARDLY DISC SECURED AT ITS INNER SIDE TO SAID RADIALLY OUTWARDLY EXTENDING FLANGE PORTION, AND A CENTRALLY APERTURED RESILIENT DIAPHRAGM SECURED TO THE OUTER SIDE OF SAID DISC, THE APERTURES IN SAID DIAPHRAGM, SAID DISC, AND SAID RADIALLY INWARDLY EXTENDING FLANGE PORTION BEING COAXIAL, THEREBY PROVIDING A MEANS FOR MOUNTING SAID BAG ASSEMBLY ON THE INLET CONDUIT OF A VACUUM CLEANER. 